Saviour on wheels soon

Ambulances at MGM Medical College and Hospital in Sakchi, Jamshedpur, on Thursday. Picture by Bhola Prasad

Accident victims lying helpless on Jamshedpur’s reckless roads, with passers-by often turning a blind eye, will now find rapid relief in a fleet of helpline vehicles.

East Singhbhum district police will soon roll out six AC ambulances, manned by trained paramedics who can rescue mishap victims and rush them to hospital. The ambulances will be fitted with GPS to help locate the nearest hospital or nursing home.

The district police in collaboration with Tata Steel and hospitals have decided to launch the system at the earliest.

SSP Amol V. Homkar on Thursday held the first meeting with representatives of local hospitals and the steel major to work out modalities for launching the system.

“Like any other city, traffic in Jamshedpur has grown immensely, resulting in frequent road mishaps. It is seen that in most accident cases, people do not want to get involved for the fear of being implicated in a medico-legal case. But once this system is in place, people will not have to worry. They will just have to call up at the toll-free number, which will be floated soon, to inform an ambulance that will be ready at a nearby convenient location,” said Homkar.

He added that they had already identified six different locations — Bistupur, Kadma, Sakchi, Golmuri, Burmamines and Jugsalai — where these ambulances would be stationed for fast relief.

The SSP said that the district police would provide the ambulances with drivers whereas Tata Steel will bring on board the trained paramedics. “Later, a separate control room will be established at one of the hospitals,” he added.

The only thing left to be done is training paramedics. “They will soon undergo the necessary training sponsored by the steel major in Calcutta. Once that is done, we will launch the system,” said the senior police officer.

On an average, three road accidents, including fatal ones, take place in the steel city every day. In the absence of a quick relief system, the victims are not taken to any hospital on time and many die owing to delayed treatment.

This kind of an ambulance service will be a new thing in the city. It will follow the golden hour rule so that an accident victim has the maximum chances of survival.